Three-Quarters of US Scientists in Nature Poll Consider Leaving the Country

According to a new survey, cuts to federal research funding have led many researchers to explore opportunities abroad.

A professor confers with his graduate student about the next steps in their research in a lab at FSU, in Tallahassee, Fla. FSU Photography Services/Florida State University via AP

A majority of U.S.-based scientists who responded to a new poll by Nature said they are considering leaving the country in response to sweeping changes in federal research policy and funding under President Donald Trump’s administration.

Of roughly 1,650 readers who completed the poll, which was released on March 27, more than 1,200 individuals—75 percent—said they were weighing a move abroad.